For the halfway point of 30 Days of Fitness, I went to Sweet Science Fitness Boxing Club for their Knockout Cardio Boxing class. I was excited but nervous for my first class! I’ve done kickboxing before, but boxing is a completely different workout. I walked in, was greeted by Laura and filled out a waiver for the class. Hall & Oates blared over the speakers, which I appreciated, since I grew up with a dad who loves classic rock. As the instructor, Marty Hill, finished up his earlier class, I met some of the other “vets” who have been taking classes at Sweet Science for 4+ years. Everyone was super nice and accommodating, especially since I was the newbie.

From there, I met with Marty briefly and he wrapped my hands in order to stabilize them. There are 100+ small bones in your hands, so you definitely want to make sure you do this before any boxing class. Since it was my first time, they provided me with the wraps and gloves. (If you are thinking about signing up long-term, Sweet Science offers a plan that includes equipment and gloves.) After my hands were wrapped, we stretched and did some exercises to get our bodies warmed up. After the warm-up, we learned some basic boxing instruction and moves like jabs, crosses and upper-cuts. We then played a game called “Marty-Says,” a play off of the game Simon-Says where we had to practice the moves we just learned. The first time we played, I was the first one out, but by the time we played the second round I got the hang of things.

After “Marty-Says” we put on our gloves. We were partnered up in teams of 2 and went to a punching bag. We did a variety of combinations on the punching bag, then with our partner. My arms, calves and back muscles were all burning! We did not stop moving the entire hour I was there, so in addition to working my muscles, this was a great cardio workout as well. Even though it was my first time, he pushed me. He would go up to everyone, call us by name, and not let us slack off, which I needed! Once we were done at the punching bags, we finished up with planks, push-ups, ab exercises and then a cool-down. Afterward, I was exhausted but felt really accomplished that I made it through.

Overall, Sweet Science was great, and it definitely changed the expectations I had about boxing. When I thought of boxing before this class, I pictured physical contact in a boxing ring. Plus, I expected to be sharing the class with a bunch of Muhammed Ali types, but that was absolutey not the case! Especially in the Cardio Box class, there is no physical contact, and the workout was for everyone–not just men or people of certain fitness levels. Sweet Science even offers ladies only boxing classes several times a week. I highly recommend this class, especially because no matter who you are, there’s no better way to deal with a bad mood than to take it out on a punching bag.

To try Sweet Science for yourself, drop in and mention this blog. If you tell them Best Self sent you, you’ll get your first group class completely free!